The paper presents the results of experimental studies on increasing the settling rate and reducing the solid phase in the clarified layer during settling of a solution of sulfuric acid leaching of heavy metals from galvanic sludge. For this purpose, it is proposed to use a monoethanolamine vinyl ester copolymer with sodium or potassium methacrylate as a flocculant. This flocculant works well in a wide range of pH of the solution medium, unlike the well-known and widely used polyacrylamide flocculant. The increase in the efficiency of settling is achieved due to the fact that the flocculant in question makes it possible to simultaneously flocculate positively and negatively charged particles due to the presence of various functional groups in its composition. The use of the proposed flocculant will ensure a more complete extraction of heavy metals from galvanic sludge, which reduces the risk of environmental pollution and their reuse in industry.
Keywords: galvanic sludge, heavy metals, leaching, flocculant, settling, suspended solids